D I R E - Excerpt
by Skullfrost
Summary: At the age of four, Draco was hit with a werewolf curse gone wrong. Due to the heir magic protecting him, the curse worked incorrectly- turning him into a Dire Wolf animagus pup. Thrown out of his home, Draco was adopted by a pack of Dire Wolves. But how will he deal with humans again, when he comes of age for enrollment at Hogwarts...?


**D I R E  
** _Prologue/Chapter 1 Excerpt_

 **A/N: Before I begin posting this story in its entirety, I have written out the end of the prologue, or Chapter 1- whether it ends up as part of the prologue or its own chapter depends on how long I make the beginning. I have started with this part first, as I generally am not great with beginnings and wanted to write other parts of the fanfic to gain muse.**

 **The general idea of the beginning is that, at the age of four, Draco was targeted by someone who had a dispute with Lucius. This person wanted to use a werewolf curse spell on Draco, as a sort of revenge on Lucius. However, the curse did not work correctly, due to the heir magic protecting Draco. Instead of becoming a werewolf, he became a Dire Wolf animagus. Stuck in his wolf pup form with no knowledge of how to change back willingly, he was found by Lucius and thrown out, because Lucius had no idea that the wolf in his house was actually his son. Draco wandered away from home after being kicked out, where he entered a forest. He walked through this forest for hours, until night fell. This is where this chapter begins.**

Draco wandered aimlessly through the dark forest, wolfish ears pressed against his head, and his little tail between his legs. He didn't know this place, and he had no idea how to even get back home. He was alone and afraid, with nowhere to go- a lost little child stuck in a new body that wasn't his own, in the middle of a dark forest in the middle of the night.

It was, needless to say, terrifying to him. He hated being alone. He wanted his mother, or his father, or _someone_ that he knew, someone he could rely on to not let him get hurt in a place like this. But his father had thrown him out, and now he had no one to turn to.

A low little whimper rose in his throat as he pressed onwards, getting slower and taking smaller steps as his fear increased. He could hear something nearby, but he didn't know what it was. Owls hooted, crickets chirped, and branches snapped here and there. He felt as if he was being watched, but each time he looked over his shoulder, there was nothing there. He soon could hear the quiet sound of moving water, an indication that a river was close by. However, he could barely even see by now, as dark as it was.

He continued on, and the river's noise grew louder. In the distance, he could see a dark shape, a lump of something. Close to the object was where the sound of water was coming from, and Draco's little child brain connected the dots: it must be some sort of bridge over the river. Draco approached the object, which turned out to be a log, he identified as he got closer. Slowly and carefully, he scrabbled up on top of it, claws scratching against the bark and causing chips to fall off. The wood creaked as he slowly made his way across, shaking in his fur. As he reached the middle, there was suddenly a loud, splintering crack. Panicked, Draco set off at a run- but was too late.

The log broke under his weight, and Draco was sent tumbling downwards towards the river, desperately trying to hold on to the broken edge of wood. This was to no avail, and Draco found himself splashing into the icy depths of the water, swept away by the current. He cried out in fear, splashing around and struggling to keep his head above water.

Draco was swept along with the current at an alarming speed, and even in the darkness he could see rocks and trees fly by as he was dragged along. His struggling became frantic, but he was growing tired, his limbs seemed to not want to move anymore. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he could see something running along the bank, moving at the same pace as he himself was moving. But soon his vision began to dim, and his struggles became weaker and weaker, until he was just barely keeping his nose out of the water to breathe.

However, if by some miracle, the drenched pup soon found himself pulled right out of the chilled waters of death, with something holding on to the scruff of his neck. He shivered madly, curling up into his own fur as he felt himself carried away from the river. At the moment, he didn't care what had saved him- all he knew was that he was now safe. He wasn't going to drown. Something had saved his life, and maybe- maybe they would bring him home? Or... they would at least keep him safe?

Draco was soon set back down on the ground, and almost as soon as he felt the grass underneath him, something else began moving across his fur. He blinked his gray eyes, looking around at the forest, still shaking from his ordeal in the river.

When he stopped feeling something move against his fur, Draco chanced a glance upwards. A dark shape loomed above him, which he could just barely make out in the darkness as some sort of animal. Was this whatever had been following him when he was drifting down the river? He blinked again and squinted his eyes to clear his vision a bit, and he could make out two blue eyes and what looked to be silver fur. The animal looked almost like a dog, but it was much larger than any he had ever seen. It had pointed ears just like his own, with fluffy, soft fur and a majestic, almost regal looking face.

This must be a wolf, he guessed. He had heard of them before- fierce wild canines who hunted in packs. But he had never in his life imagined that they would be so _big._ He also never imagined that one would ever save his life.

"...Who're you?" Draco finally mustered up the courage to ask after a moment, lightly lifting his ears. The wolf seemed to give almost a smile, and its face took on a gentle expression.

"I am the alpha of the pack whose territory you have wandered into, little pup," she spoke in reply, her voice even softer and gentler than her face. "You are foreign... not a pup of my own. Where do you come from, little one? What brings you to my pack's part of the forest?"

"W-well..." Draco stared down at his paws, curling his little tail around himself. "D-dad threw me out... A-and... Dunno where 'm at..."

"Is that so..." the wolf murmured, cocking her head lightly to the side. "Well... I don't know what kind of father would cast their own pup aside... But I will not allow a little pup to die all alone. Would you like to come with me?"

"R-really?" Draco asked, eyes wide. He didn't know wolves could be so kind- from what he'd heard of them, they were savage killers... but this wolf seemed to be as gentle as his own mother- in fact, even more so.

"Of course," the wolf responded, lifting her head a bit higher. "I wouldn't leave a pup alone out here. You would never survive on your own. I've got my own litter already just about your age, I'm sure you would fit in nicely."

"O-okay," Draco hesitantly replied, slowly standing to his paws again. He pressed himself up against the large female wolf's legs, to which she replied by reaching her head down and giving him a gentle nudge with her nose. The two of them began to walk, with Draco trailing behind the alpha.

"So... uh... what's your name?" Draco asked as they moved, glancing up at the older wolf.

"My name is Lari, little one," she replied, giving him a small smile-like expression. "But... you may, if you wish, call me 'mom'. After all, I am bringing you home to my pack, where you will join my own litter."

"...Okay," the little pup replied, blinking up at her. "...Mom."

Lari gave a little chuckle, ears twitching. "Just you wait... I'm sure you'll love living with your new family."

Soon, the trees began to thin. A little ways away, Draco could make out the silhouette of what looked to be a somewhat tall rock wall, curved around a clearing. Multiple dark lumps were sprawled nearby, some moving and some still. Draco fell back a bit, ears pulling backwards and resting against his head. He pressed himself against Lari's hindlegs, a bit unsure of whether the other wolves would be as kind as the alpha.

"Don't worry, pup," Lari murmured as she noticed Draco's demeanor. "None of my family will harm you. I promise. You do not need to hide behind me."

With a small whine, Draco cautiously pulled away from Lari's hindquaters, ears perking a small bit. As they got closer, the little pup could clearly make out the shapes of multiple wolves. Some looked about as big as female beside him, while some seemed a bit smaller. He noticed that there was a hole in the middle of the rock wall, leading to what seemed to be a cave-like den. From the opening, Draco could clearly hear little high-pitched voices talking to eachother- though exactly what they were saying, he couldn't understand. Were those his new siblings? They sounded young.

Soon, the other wolves in the clearing began to notice the new arrival, and many heads lifted to watch him as he passed.

"Who's this?" one of the smaller black males asked, poking his nose at the little newcomer. "Where'd you get him?"

"I rescued him. Poor little thing was nearly drowned in a river... Abandoned by his parents," Lari replied, sending a symapthetic look towards Draco, who didn't know what to think of having the black male's nose in his face.

"You're adopting him, mother?" the male questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Of course. I couldn't leave him out there to die, now could I?"

As Lari spoke, a large russet wolf emerged from the mouth of the den, watching Draco with interest. He approached Lari, greeting her by touching noses, before turning his attention back to the little pup at her paws. "Well hello there," he greeted, flicking his ears. "So Lari's adopting you, eh?"

"Er... y-yeah," Draco squeaked in response, ears flattening a little. It was a bit unnerving having a bunch of wolves shoving their faces at him. "S-she is..."

"Well then, welcome to the pack," the russet male replied, lifting his head. "I'm the alpha male around here. The name's Roshul. You can call me dad, though, if Lari's adopting you into our litter."

So this male was her mate, then. At that news, Draco perked up a bit, giving a tiny little grin to his new parents, tail lightly thumping against the forest floor.

"He's a cute one, I'll say that," the younger black wolf stated, flopping down and resting his head on his paws, which were casually crossed over eachother. "Never seen a pup with fur like that."

"That's because I've never produced one," Lari responded, rolling her eyes and bending down to lick him on the nose. "And you've never been outside this pack."

"True, true," the male chuckled. "Anyway- hi there, little guy. The name's Jhotun. You got a name?"

"...Draco," Draco replied, easing up further. These wolves didn't seem too bad.

And then suddenly, a sudden snarl was heard, causing Draco to immediately tense and bury himself in Lari's fur, quivering in fear. A white female wolf showed herself, baring her teeth and glaring at the new pup.

"What the hell is that?" she growled, scrunching her nose up in distaste. "You're taking in this- this _runt_? He doesn't belong here! He's an outsider, he'd be better off as _lunch!_ "

Draco whimpered and cowered away from this aggressive female, seeking shelter in the warm fur of his adoptive mother.

"You will not speak that way about my new son," Lari stated, voice now cold and firm, as she glared at the aggressive wolf, lip slightly curled. "I am the alpha. I have adopted him, and what I say goes. If you dare harm a single hair on his pelt, you will be out of this family immediately."

"Mother, come _on!_ " the other wolf growled, approaching further. "Look at him! He's- he's pathetic! And he's not ours!"

"I don't care!" Lari suddenly snarled back, baring her teeth just as viciously as the white female had been baring hers. The large alpha stood to her paws, standing quite a bit taller than her white-furred daughter. "My word is final, Kani! Draco is a pack member now, and that is that! For your insubordination, you are not permitted to sleep within our camp for three days. You can sleep at the edge of the territory, away from the rest of the pack."

"That's not fair!" Kani snapped, tail shooting up into the air and bristling. "You can't just kick me out!"

With a sudden burst of power and speed, Lari lunged for the younger white wolf, who immediately turned tail and ran. The alpha female gave chase, snarling and driving the other wolf out of the clearing. Draco was left with Roshul, Jhotun, and the rest of the wolves in the clearing who had not yet shown any signs of aggression. Whimpering, the little pup pressed himself against Roshul, quivering fearfully.

"Hey, don't worry," the alpha male murmured, bending his head down and nuzzling his adopted son affectionately. "You're safe. I promise. Don't be afraid of Kani- she wouldn't dare hurt you as long as I and Lari are around, and I bet your older siblings will protect you as well. You are a member of our pack now, and will be treated as such."

Draco gave a meek little nod, though he didn't separate from Roshul. The russet wolf gave him a reassuring little smile, bending down and gently lifting him up by the scruff, as Lari had done when saving him from the river. The large male then made his way towards the den, carrying his new son.

Upon entering, Draco was greeted by four little faces staring at him curiously. Roshul set him down beside the other pups, who immediately began poking their little noses at him.

"So this's the new brother?" a little timber-russet pup commented, sniffing at Draco's face. "Cool!"

"He smells funny," a black one with a little white patch on their chest added, head cocked to the side. "Where'd he come from?"

"I like his fur," a cream pup yipped, circling him and rubbing her face against his soft white-blond fur.

"I heard somethin' about 'im drownin in a river or somethin'. I bet it was scary," said the last one, with a fluffy timber pelt.

"Uh..." Draco could barely even comprehend all of this. He stared around at the four pups, who all looked eager to meet him. "H-hi?"

"Hiya!" the russet one barked, bending his front down and sticking his hindquarters in the air, wagging his tail. "I'm Mars!"

"I"m Jaerla," the black one announced, tilting her nose upward with a grin.

"Heh... I'm Amani," the cream one barked, still poking at Draco's fur. "Your fur is so _soft_!"

"Annnnd I'm Timber. Great, now that we've all introduced ourselves, who're you?" the timber-coated one finished off, giving a little smirk.

"I think he said his name was like, Drakey or something," Jaerla giggled, raising a paw to her mouth and looking amused. "That's a funny name."

"Hey!" Draco huffed indignantly, puffing his fur out. "It's not 'Drakey'! It's Draco!"

The other pups all chuckled at this, amusement lighting up their fluffy faces.

"Well, Draco! We're glad to have ya!" Jaerla barked, wagging her tail and resting a paw on his shoulder. "So welcome to the family!"

Draco only gave a small nod, having no clue what to even say. He glanced back over at Roshul, who watched the pups with a loving expression. Draco couldn't remember Lucius ever looking at _him_ like that.

And suddenly, Draco was happy to be with this new family. With two loving and gentle parents and siblings he could play with, he could have an even better life here than he had ever had before.

He realized then that he never wanted to go back home.


End file.
